A Little Game
by ghostfireninja
Summary: Leo doesn't really hate games. But then when it came to telling some things true, he would rather prefer to hear others do it. Liper. Two shot. Sorry for the bad summary. R/R
1. A Little Game of Truth

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson.**

**A/N: Hello there. I just want to say that I used to be a Liper fan. But then Caleo came and they are just totally adorable. It's just, the fire that burns within Liper isn't completely gone, and I wanted to write something for them. My feels for them just suddenly returned. Well, this is my second time writing Liper. Okay. Enough blabber, here it is. R/R :D**

* * *

When the mouth of the bottle pointed at Leo, he was certain he shouldn't have agreed on Piper when she suggested "Spin the Bottle". All eyes landed on him when the glass stopped spinning. He was thinking of something that would stop them from asking truth or dare.

Tell them he's suddenly sleepy? No one would buy that.

Fetch them some drinks? They are probably more interested in torturing him than quenching their thirsts.

They gave him much time to think of an escape plan, which didn't really help. All plans he could think of weren't fool proof. Hazel said the words first.

"Truth or dare?" She asked, her lips slowly forming into a curve.

He thought about it. Dare? He suddenly remembered Percy picking dare, and what they made him do wasn't fun at all. It was embarrassing, and nobody could blame them. What's the point of this game anyway but getting yourself into all sorts of trouble.

He decided to pick truth.

Perhaps half of the people in the room stopped smiling. Perhaps they were just too stunned that Leo chose truth instead of dare. He wasn't the type of person who would say a lot of secrets, after all. Or probably, they were just too confused on what to ask him.

The last choice was probably the most accurate.

For a moment they were all silent, as if they don't know what to say. Which was pretty much true.

"No? Okay let's skip." Leo said, hoping it would convince them. But they weren't convinced at all.

"Wait wait." Piper said.

"Oh come on, Pipes." He pleaded. "You won't get anything good from me at all."

"Should we ask him about who he was thinking of when we found him back. You know, that time after Khione made him fly?" Piper suggested.

"Probably." Percy said. "But I tell you, I think I know who that person is already."

All eyes turned to Percy, including Leo's, which was probably wider than the others.

"Whoah whoah. It's just a guess." Percy said, holding his hands up as if he was under arrest. He looked straight into Leo. "Do I know her?"

Leo didn't answer, but the look on his face was too obvious. It read yes.

Percy chuckled. "Yeah I think I know her." The others weren't very amused. Annabeth, surprisingly, was as curious as everyone else. She nudged her shoulders at Percy, who was smiling beside her. "Who is it?" She secretly asked.

"You'll just have to wait before the bottle lands on me." Percy said, smiling at Leo. Leo wanted to thank him. Percy had helped him out of an awkward situation. Now the next thing he need to do is to keep the bottle away from Percy the next time they would spin it.

Then Jason stood up. Everyone looked at him. "I'm just going to get some food." He said. "All this sitting and spinning has made me hungry."

"Oh please you are just trying to avoid the next turn." Hazel said.

"Nope." Jason said. "I'm hungry." Jason said, half lying. He was afraid, after all that if the bottle would land on him, they would ask him sort of the same question they did with Leo.

Leo sighed. He wished he could go with Jason. But…

"Oh. I've got a good one." Frank said.

"I hope it's good for me too." Leo said.

Frank smiled before turning to Piper, who was as confused as Leo when Frank did so.

"Before Jason, you and Piper were… pretty close."

"Yeah?" Leo said. He was starting to get a little nervous. Well, if they're going to ask him something about Piper, that wouldn't be too hard. He knows her a little too well. He was her best friend after all. And she, his best friend too.

He knows that she shudders a bit whenever they watch a movie in which her father is starring in, and the girls at the back woo on his acting skills. He knows she hates bugs, beetles particularly. He knows she almost drowned one time when they were playing in wilderness camp, if only he hadn't saved her.

Yet she still jumped on the water when he came back from an underwater tour. And he got a kiss on the cheek too.

"Soo… were there instances when you think you liked her more than a friend?" Frank continued.

Crap. He didn't think of that question, he didn't manage to dodge it. He nervously looked at Piper, who was trying hard not to laugh. Why would she think this is funny anyway?

His hands were now caged with Hazels, and it would be pretty painful if he decided not to answer the question. Hazel's got a tight grip, after all. "Ahhh." He can feel Hazel's grip tightening a bit.

"Wait, that's not a valid question." Leo said. "Hera messed with our minds, after all. Right Pipes?"

"Yeah." Piper said, though she was still laghing.

"Either way. Instincts." Frank said.

"Yeah." Percy agreed. "I remembered Annabeth too, even when Hera messed me up pretty bad." He turned to Annabeth and gave her a big grin.

Meanwhile, Hazel was hopeless.

"Ok ok." He said. "I… I don't know. I- I think I did."

They were silent, but it wasn't for too long.

"I mean, come on." Leo said. "Anyone would've fallen for her right? Especially when you know her a lot more than others." He looked at Piper, his eyes looked as if he was saying sorry.

"Seriously, Leo?" Piper said. But she wasn't angry or annoyed about it. She just felt, looked like the same old Piper.

"I guess so." Leo said.

"Are you sure that's not a product of Hera's butting in?" Hazel said.

"Yeah. Yeah, it's kind of different. Like it's from a different kind of memory." He paused. "But- but it doesn't matter anymore. I mean, yeah. It wouldn't make sense now, would it? Everything's different now, everything changed so…" He tried to laugh. He then looked at Piper. "Sorry Pipes."

She kind of laughed too. "Don't say sorry. It's… it's not bad of a confession."

Leo was thankful Jason wasn't there to hear it.

* * *

When they were done playing and everybody seemed to be so sleepy, Piper snuck up behind Leo, who was yawning and steering the Argo II's wheel.

"Hey." She said.

Leo almost jumped out of his skin when he heard her. He turned around, still kind of embarrassed."I am never playing Spin the Bottle with those guys again." He grinned, trying to keep his Leo-level on.

"Yeah." She agreed. Before she can continue to say more, she walked closer towards Leo, then she balled her fist and aimed it as his arm, just near the shoulder. It wasn't hard, and she meant it that way. "Was that true, though?"

"Yeah." Leo said. "But… don't remind me. It's really embarrassing, especially when you're the one asking me about it."

"Yeah." She said. "Okay." She stopped for a while, then she landed her little fist on him again. This time, a little bit harder, but it still didn't mean any harm.

Leo looked at her, and he was smiling.

She can't help but smile back too, even if she was feeling teensy annoyed at him.

"Why didn't you tell me then?" Piper said, clearly not understanding what Leo just said a while ago.

"Well, I don't know Pipes. We were friends, we have fun, I always see you, I guess that was pretty much enough."

"You think so?" Piper shifted from where she was standing.

"Yeah." Leo said, now keeping an eye on up front. There was silence. Then Leo spoke some more. "Besides, I mean, you're with Jason now. Everything's fine... and I have someone waiting for me." He smiled.

"Who're you talking about anyway?" Piper said. "You don't always tell me a lot of things."

Leo just laughed.

"Like what I've just known today. You like keeping secrets, do you?"

"Sorry." He said. "Do you hate me now?" He was joking.

"No." Piper said. "Never... But still, you're a bit of a… I don't know. I'm calling you a coward, or maybe a bit stupid for not telling me then."

The light from the fireplace on their side was a little too bright.

But Leo's face was a little red, and it wasn't because of the fire.

"Well, Hera messed us up, and when we came back, BOOM. You're with Jason." Leo said, trying to laugh.

"Still." Piper said. "I mean, before that. Why didn't you?"

"Oh. I don't know." Leo said. "We wouldn't know, Pipes. What if I already did? Or What if I didn't?"

Piper looked down. "Yeah. Yeah you're right." She looked up at him, and for a moment the two of them were like back at wilderness camp. The way when Leo was the only one who'd listen to her problems, the way he's the only one who'd see her eyes shine like that when she wanted to clear up something. As it did this time. She spoke. "Hera messed up with us. You wouldn't know, but what if there were instances when I liked you more than a friend too?"

"Oh. I guess… that's not quite possible."

"You can't be too sure."

"Guess so." Leo said. "But then Hera still came… And if ever that was true, it's been replaced with something equally wonderful, right?"

She didn't answer him. Instead, he just called his name.

"Hmmm?"

"You have to tell me who's that girl you said is 'waiting for you' alright?" Piper said, trying to close the discussion.

"Of course. Soon, beauty queen." Leo said, before grinning back at her.

_Beauty queen._ Only he calls her that, it's became some sort of a nickname he conjured up. And even if that was pretty annoying at first, Piper had learned to like it in some ways. When someone would call her other than her name, she'd know who it was.

"Repair boy..." He stuck her tongue at him. "Promise me when we win this thing, we'd mess up Hera pretty bad too."

"Uhh. I agree with you there, Pipes, but I don't want to turn into some kind of animal or anything."

Piper laughed. "We're just going to ask her a lot of questions. And I mean a lot. I have to confirm if what you said was really true."

"I'm hurt. Don't you trust me that much?" Leo said.

"I want to confirm mine too, okay." She said.

"What to confirm?" Leo asked.

"No more questions. I'm sleepy." She said. "Good night, captain. Don't sleep too late."

"Yeah. To you too, beautiful." He said before turning back and steering the ship to its course.

She misses some things he used to say to her.

The light from the fireplace on their side was a little too bright.

He spoke again before she can leave. "And if you can't sleep." He smiled. "You can always stay with me and talk to me like you always do. You know I have trouble sleeping sometimes too. Just come around here and… like… yeah. Good night." He quickly turned around.

Piper's face was red, and it wasn't because of the fire.


	2. Well, I Might Have Told You

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson.**

**A/N: So I don't know this fic was supposed to be a one-shot but then I couldn't sleep and I just had an idea and I wrote it down and here it goes. It's just my love for Liper comes on randomly and when they do they don't stop easily.**

* * *

It was almost three in the morning when Leo finally decided to get some shut-eye. Sometimes, he ends up sitting on one of the chairs in the controls room until one of the people staying in Argo II would wake him from his slumber. This time though, he was thinking of a lot of things. And he doesn't want that. He wants to stop those thoughts from clouding up his mind.

He shouldn't have called her that. Does he always call her that? Well, he might have. Back in the days. He wasn't sure, but something tells him he used to nickname her "beautiful", along with "beauty queen", and "Pipes". He puts an arm over his face as he headed towards his room. It was ridiculous getting embarrassed, even though none of the others were up to see him in that state.

He thought that as soon as his back feels the soft surface of his bed, his eyes would be closing until morning. But it didn't work that way. Why did Frank have to ask him something like that, anyway? If he could've foreseen the future, he would've pretended he was sick or anything, sleep, set himself on fire, or anything to undo the very embarrassing act of joining truth and dare.

It's not like he feels the same way anymore. He's not even 100% sure he liked her. Well, perhaps he was 95% sure… Okay that's still a lot… But still!

Piper is his best friend. She always has and she always will. But after she found out about that, Leo wasn't sure he'd be treating her the same way as before without getting red and basically self-conscious and wishing Piper would suddenly forget about it as he tries to make the same old joke and watches her laugh and… Yeah. He's not even sure how he'll face her tomorrow.

And there's Jason. Gods. He had to be very lucky he wasn't there to hear that. There's Jason and he even said that about Piper. Well, curse Hazel's overly tight grip. Why does he have to be such a dork?

He didn't know how much time he'd spent searching for the comfiest position on his not so big but very comfortable bunk, trying to get some sleep. He thought of other things instead. Of the journey they've had so far and the monsters they've faced and how thankful he is they got through with it, anyway. He was wishing they would remain that fortunate and victorious, because wishing they'd never face another monster while being a demigod in a giant ship hovering in the air and a not-so-merciful Titan is reawakening is nonsense. He was thinking about Calypso, and a speech he would give to the gods to free her. And if that doesn't work, then building a boat that would somehow navigate to Ogygia. And on top of anything else completing their quest so he can do any of those things. He was also thinking about his mother, the thought which calmed him the most.

Even if that's the thought that brought him so much pain. The image of his mother in his mind, though far away, is what he holds onto. He felt his hands twitching, moving against his will. He felt as his fingertips hit the surface of the wall, and he slept…

* * *

So there was Piper Mclean, a beautiful girl who was very scared and nervous at the same time. It was her first day at Wilderness camp and she barely knew anyone at all. A couple of girls, friendly looking but she isn't really good at making friends… There was that guy who kept on staring at her but he was mischievous and had picked on a fight even though it was his first day as well. There was also that elfish guy with curly hair, who at that time, seemed to be the only one who was alone too, even though the place was bustling with faces everywhere.

And now, it has come into that duration where they have to sleep, and surely she's not into it. She wasn't afraid of the dark, not really, but she didn't like the atmosphere. She didn't like it why the other kids like her had gotten to sleep pretty easily. She was almost crying, crouching and facing the blankness of the wall when she heard a clicking sound from it. It was an awful tune, it doesn't maybe even have a tune at all, just random clicks with differing speeds and length.

It's probably one of the guys on the other room. They have divided the rooms for boys and girls and she had been quick enough to get the bed closest on the wall first. If that's the case then that boy can't sleep as well. Piper tried to return the weird clicks, tapping on the wall randomly so that whoever on the other side might notice that someone was interrupting their work.

"Oh, sorry. Did I wake you up?" A voice came from the other side, faintly.

"No." Piper replied, not too loud but enough that the boy on the other side can hear. "I couldn't sleep, that's all… That's…"

"Oh." The boy answered. "Well, we're the same then… Sorry, if I disturbed you with the sounds though…"

"You startled me, but I wasn't disturbed at all…" Piper replied. "What was that anyway? Are you a drummer or something?"

"No! No..." The boy replied. "That's a… a… no I can't tell you 'cause it's embarrassing."

"I won't judge. I don't know who you are. I think it's rude to laugh at other people when you don't know them at all." Piper replied.

The answer came on a little while. "Have you heard of Morse Code? It's a kind of-"

"Yeah. My dad told me about that once." Piper replied. "You know how to do that? That's awesome. How could you even memorize that stuff? It's just dashes and dots."

"My mom taught me about it." The boy replied.

"Was that a message you were doing?" Piper asked.

"Well, yeah."

"What does that mean?" Piper was curious.

"Here comes the embarrassing part…" The boy said.

"I won't laugh. Promise." Piper replied. She can feel a smile curving on her mouth.

"'I love you.'" The boy replied.

What? Did a boy she doesn't know just tell her he loved her?

"But don't get the wrong idea." He quickly added. "I used to do that with my mom. That was for her. See I shouldn't have told you. I'm cringing here of embarrassment right now and you're not even here to see it."

Piper was laughing. She was holding it in, more accurately.

"Hey?" The boy spoke again. "Were you creeped out? Sor-"

"No no." Piper replied. "It's… sorry it's just. I'm laughing, you know but not because it was weird of anything it's just… I really thought you addressed that-"

"Oh. Agh. No. Agh this is horrible. You're terrible. You said you won't laugh. Agh. This is so embarrassing." The boy was saying on the other side. Then Piper heard another sound, much louder with a bit of angriness, and familiar. It was Coach Hedge's.

"Valdez! I can't tell for sure but I'm betting it's you talking right now. Get back to bed!"

Piper had to cover her mouth as well, even if she wasn't making any sound.

"I'm sorry!" Piper said, as soon as Coach Hedge's voice piped down. "I got you in trouble."

"Nah." Leo said. "I always get in trouble."

Piper had to smile. "I don't know who you are though."

"Leo." Leo said. "You've heard my last name."

"Piper. Piper Mclean." Piper replied.

"Mclean, like that handsome actor-"

"Valdez!" Coach Hedge sprang up again.

Piper had to thank Coach Hedge for that one because she doesn't want anyone to crowd over her for the thought that his father was a well-known actor in their area. No, she can't let that happen.

"Hey… Leo!" She said as soon as Coach Hedge's footsteps receded. He must've come over into Leo's bed. Piper heard a grunt. Leo must've acted he was already asleep, she heard fake snoring noises as well. Then there were footsteps again as Coach went to his bed. "Teach me some Morse tomorrow, okay?"

"Sure." Leo replied, his voice lower this time. "Though I don't think I'd approach you first. I doubt I would since I just accidentally told you I love you. I wouldn't get over that embarrassment easily. You have to find me, that would be easy because I always walk alone."

Piper giggled. "Okay. Though I think I might've found you already. Good night!"

"Good night!" Leo replied. Very very silently.

Then Piper woke up. Now grown up Piper, lying on her bed in her room in Argo II, in the middle of the night. A dream huh…

A dream.

It seemed more of a memory than a dream, however.

She heard the occasional taps from the other side of the wall. The clicks still sounded the same the first time she heard it.

* * *

At morning, all seven of them were having their usual round of breakfast, except Leo… Because he wasn't feeling hungry. He was feeling a little dizzy for staying up very late at night. He was slamming his head on his bed again when someone knocked on the door.

It was Piper who came in. She was holding a cup of who knows what in her hands. It must've been chocolate. Piper preferred chocolate to coffee back at camp. "I thought I told you not to stay very late up last night."

"Sorry, Pipes." Leo grunted. "I couldn't sleep."

"Does that explain the tapping on the wall at three in the morning?" Piper said, raising one of her eyebrows.

Leo's mouth was left hanging open. He wanted to say something, but it came out a series of "Wha-"s.

"Breakfast is on." She added. Then she left.

Leo put both of his hands on his head and slammed it on his pillow for quite a few times. Why'd he forgotten Piper was sleeping on the room next to him? Oh gods why.

Why did she even wake up in the middle of the night, anyway?

Well, there's nothing to worry about. She didn't understand it, right?

Oh wait, did he teach her about Morse back then? He didn't right? Oh gods, he hoped he didn't.

But no… He did. He did!

This is just too much to handle. He had to avoid looking directly into Piper's eyes for the whole day. Even though she doesn't feel affected towards it as much as he is. It annoyed him that it affected him, honestly.

So when night came he avoided going into his room to sleep as well. He might as well do it on one of the chairs in the control room, as he sometimes does. But then he heard footsteps behind him as he was trying to talk to Festus.

"Repair Boy." She said. Leo doesn't need to turn around to know who it was.

"Look. Piper… Pipes, can we just forget it and act as if that didn't happen because I swear I was dying of embarrassment yesterday and now, today as well because heck, sorry I forgot that our rooms were next to each other and I didn't know you were a very light sleeper anyway, and that three word message is for my mom, because yes I still do it until now because it calms my nerves and-"

Leo had to stop talking because Piper was laughing. And he had said enough already anyway.

"Why are you laughing?" Leo resumed talking. "Oh gods, I'm so ridiculous Piper Mclean is laughing at me, I couldn't even crack a simple joke right now to make her go away."

"Sorry, Leo." Piper said, wiping a tear from her eye. "I had a dream, okay? And coincidentally, it was that time we first met in Wilderness Camp and that time when you tapped Morse Code on the thin wall separating our rooms as well, so sorry if I just had to laugh even though I shouldn't be."

"Oh." Leo replied. "Whaaaaat?" Leo was turning away from her now.

"Hey, Leo! You shouldn't be embarrassed like that, you know. I've never seen you flustered like that before. Well, I guess maybe that time when your pants got flown away when we were having our River-crossing lesson." Piper said.

"I forgot to put on a belt! Pipes, we don't have to go back to that unnecessary memory." Leo said.

"Okay. Okay sorry." Piper said. "All I'm saying is that I don't want to lose you. I mean, I don't want to lose the Leo I have known and I have very much liked because of that."

"I can go back to the old Leo, I promise." Leo said. "But you have to admit these series of events are ridiculously plotting against me, so… I guess you should give me a time-out for just today." He was trying to sound convinscing, but he was almost laughing.

"Sure, sure." Piper said.

"Good." Leo said, smiling and walking towards her, messing up her hair. Then he heard a familiar tune. It's not on wood this time, but it's still the same. Piper was tapping some sort of stone in the metal railings on the boat.

Clicks that have differing speed and length. Clicks that sounded similar to what Leo does with his fingers, only a difference at the end, where she had added up three extra letters.

"Guess who still remembers about the thing you taught me after I've known you had a very funny side?!" Piper said, opening her hands and excitedly opening up her mouth after she was finished talking.

"You go back to bed now, Beauty queen." Leo said. "Now!" He was saying, but he was quick to turn around.

"Seriously though that's the only pattern I remember doing even if you'd taught me how all the letters sounded." Piper said, looking at Leo's back, who was now talking to Festus and supposedly ignoring everything she's saying.

"Yeah you've played a good mom because you always did that everytime I found myself unconsciously doing that on the wall." Leo replied, who, despite trying to block Piper's voice with his own, was listening to it, anyway.

"Well, thank you very much. I hope I can be of assistance in calming your nerves down everytime you can't sleep in the near future." Piper said. Leo still wasn't looking at her. "Good night, Leo Valdez. You can talk all you want in your bed now because Coach Hedge isn't there to scold you anymore."

This time, he turned around. "Good night, too. Piper Mclean, who was so flustered as well when the whole camp mysteriously found out about her father being the most famous man in the field of acting, Mr. Tristan Mclean, that she tried to wave of every single girl trying to get her dad's signature for them."

"I'm going now so you should stop talking already." Piper said, walking away inside as she did so.

"Huh." Leo said. "It still works even after all these years. The Tristan Card is still good as ever."

* * *

A dream for Leo Valdez as he slept on that night.

A memory dream.

One time at camp when the girl on the other side of the wall can't seem to sleep.

And so it was the first time ever in the history of the two of them that it was Piper Mclean who started to tap on the wall. First time ever that it was Leo Valdez who tapped back for a reply.

And it was different, as you can see, because Leo tapped I love you's on the wall because of the memory of his mother.

But Piper tapped I love you's on the wall, even if her circumstances are quite different.

* * *

**Done. Agh I hope it was alright it's almost three here in the morning on where I stay and I should sleep. I just loved the idea about the morse code and everything, if only i could do that to help me sleep as well but I don't know any of it. ****Maybe I should practice**

**Anyway. Reviews are appreciated :D**


End file.
